Aurora Airport Expansion Gets A Big Push

September 08, 1989|By Joseph Sjostrom.

The U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations asked the Federal Aviation Administration on Thursday to give high priority to consideration of a $27 million grant for expansion of the Aurora Municipal Airport.

The committee included the request in an annual appropriations bill that provides the U.S. Department of Transportation budget for fiscal year 1990, which begins Oct. 1. The FAA is part of the Department of Transportation.

A similar request to give high priority to the Aurora airport was included in the House transportation appropriations bill by U.S. Rep. George Sangmeister (D., Ill.). His district includes part of Aurora but does not include the airport itself, which is next to the village of Sugar Grove about 5 miles west of Aurora.

The bill seeks high priority for more than 20 transportation projects nationwide, said David Carle, spokesman for Sen. Paul Simon (D., Ill.).

He said the secretary of transportation retains authority to decide which projects get priority, but the committees` requests will enhance those projects` chances of receiving favorable consideration.

Planning for the expansion is well underway, though Aurora hasn`t formally applied for the money. The expansion is expected to be completed by 1994.

Scott Palmer, chief of staff for U.S. Rep. Dennis Hastert (R., Ill.), said Hastert sought and received assurances from the House Appropriations Committee that the request for high priority was not intended to interfere with negotiations between Aurora and communities close to the airport over noise, traffic and other issues.

Those communities have long sought a role in the planning on the grounds that, because they are near the airport, they will be subjected more directly than Aurora to noise and other problems if the airport is expanded.

Residents of Sugar Grove, much like the suburban residents around O`Hare International Airport, have fought over the years to control noise generated by aircraft at the Aurora field.

Suburban communities neighboring O`Hare have for two decades battled the City of Chicago on airport expansion-primarily the building of new runways-citing noise and safety as major issues.

Chicago, in concert with the suburbs, is preparing a noise study, required by the FAA, before more federal dollars for soundproofing can be released.

Many Sugar Grove residents, including the village`s mayor, have said they fear that Aurora someday will increase the weight limit of the runways to allow operations of noisy commercial or freight aircraft. Aurora Mayor David Pierce has repeatedly assured the tiny Fox Valley community that his city doesn`t contemplate that type of expansion.

Main elements of the expansion plan are:

- Extension of the primary runway to 6,500 feet from 5,000 feet and an increase in its weight-bearing capacity to 70,000 pounds.

- Construction of a parallel training runway that would be 3,200 feet.

- Extension of a secondary runway to 3,850 feet from 3,200 feet.

- Improvement of navigation aids, hangar space and other facilities.

The airport can now handle 125 takeoffs and landings an hour. The expansion will permit the airport to handle 52 percent more takeoffs and landings.

The proposed 6,500-foot runway would be long enough for passenger jets such as a Boeing 727; however, the weight-bearing capacity of 70,000 pounds is normally insufficient for that type of airplane, according to authorities.

Aurora officials have promised to keep the runways` capacity at 70,000 pounds, but Mario Tolomei, mayor of Sugar Grove, said he is not fully convinced that those are the city`s intentions.

``They`ll have the length, so what`s to prevent them five years later from asking permission to increase the strength to 110,000 pounds?`` Tolomei asked.

Aurora officials have also promised that the airport will not be used by any scheduled passenger service, but is intended to serve corporate and private aircraft.

Tolomei and other critics have complained that the airport`s plans to acquire more than 800 acres of property will cut into school district and fire prevention district revenues by taking that land off the tax rolls.

The FAA last month approved the expansion, saying plans ``will not significantly affect the quality of the human environment.``

Tolomei did not specifically dispute the finding, but said his village as well as Sugar Grove Township and other representatives of unincorporated subdivisions want a greater say in airport expansion plans.

``We don`t want to wait until there is a problem. We want to get control now,`` Tolomei said. ```We`ll have to put up with the noise and grief and aggravation and get nothing for it.``